Dream Catcher
by Cactus Bob
Summary: Yugi starts dreaming of a violent Atem. When Dream Atem's beatings start manifesting in the waking world, the line between reality and nightmare becomes too blurred to recognize the difference.
1. Nightmares

Hiya! This double post is brought to you by Christopher Columbus, a wonderful person who sailed the ocean blue in 1492 and brought us Americans a nice holiday.

Yu-Gi-Oh! © Kazuki Takahashi

* * *

"Useless child," Atem spat, sitting casually in his throne as he looked down at the quivering, pale boy at his feet. "I thought you would have realized long ago that I neither needed nor wanted you."

"I'm sorry, please," Yugi begged, tears running down his face. "Let me go, I won't come back, I promise."

"Your word is worth less than the ground beneath the peasants' feet!" Atem roared, standing up and walking angrily toward Yugi. "I should kill you now and be rid of you, but my mercy does not allow me such rights." Yugi pulled himself across the floor with his hands, nervous to be so close to Atem.

"You're weak. You're pathetic! Everyone you loved has suffered because of you! Your parents are dead because of you! Your grandfather's soul was taken because of you! Joey, Tea, and Tristan were all possessed and used as toys because of you! You made me suffer as well. You stuffed me back into this human form, denying me my place in the afterlife because of your selfishness! Go back to the orphanage, Yugi, no one wants you," Atem growled. "No one ever did, remember? No one ever wanted the sniveling shrimp hiding from the adults in the back of the room. You had to wait the longest for a family while you watched all your 'friends' find homes of their own. Worthless, self-centered boy! You don't deserve any of us!"

Yugi was too afraid, too ashamed to cry. He huddled in the corner of the palace, hugging his knees and shaking. "You can't even stand up to me," Atem said, and pulled Yugi to his feet by his wrist. "For once in your life, have a spine!" He delivered a vicious backhand to Yugi's left cheek, and Yugi fell to the ground with the force of it.

"Leave, and never come back," said Atem as he regained his throne. "For my mercy will suffer you no longer."

* * *

Atem cracked open his eyes and looked over at the bed across from him. It was early, even before dawn, but Yugi was out of bed. He glanced over at the clock and saw that it was three-thirty in the morning.

Atem lifted himself from the soft, warm covers and stepped out into the hallway. The light was on in the kitchen, which meant that Yugi was probably in there, for whatever reason.

Yugi was stirring hot chocolate in a pot, his brow creased with distress and his eyes puffy and red. At the sound of the door opening, he turned around, surprised. "Atem, what are you doing up?" he asked. His voice was distorted by suppressed emotion.

"I was about to ask you the same thing," Atem replied, sitting down at the kitchen table. Yugi took out two cups for the hot chocolate and poured an equal amount into both of them. He had made too much for himself, anyway. "Thanks," Atem said, taking his mug.

Yugi sat down in the chair and slowly sipped his chocolate. "Well?" Atem asked finally after long moments of silence. "Are you going explain your insomnia or not?"

"It's nothing… it's silly," Yugi mumbled. "I'm fine, I just couldn't sleep, that's all."

"Really?" Atem asked skeptically. Yugi looked up at him, frowning as he saw that his façade wasn't working. "Yugi, whatever's got you up at this hour has to be serious. The last time you woke up at three-thirty, the world was ending."

Yugi frowned. "You promise you won't make fun of me?" Atem nodded. "I… I had a bad dream." Yugi looked embarrassed when he had said it. "Yeah, I know, it's childish, it shouldn't have bothered me that much."

"Nonsense, Yugi," said Atem. "I find that when I have had a bad dream, hot chocolate and company is a lot better than trying to go back to sleep right after."

"When was the last time you had a bad dream?" Yugi said gloomily. "I bet they don't faze you a bit."

"Well, it was about five thousand years ago, and the hot chocolate was actually beer, but I don't think that really matters, does it? The point is that I understand."

Yugi smiled a bit and took another sip of his drink. "Did you… want to talk about it?" Atem offered. "It helps." Yugi looked up at Atem, the face that had been so angry in his dream. That same face was smiling at him now.

"We… I mean, you and I were… having a conversation," Yugi began. "In my dream."

Atem contemplated what to do with this information. "Was it so horrible?" he asked.

"Please don't be offended, but you were… you weren't really yourself," Yugi said. "Y-you were different… mean."

For a moment, Yugi thought that Atem really would be angry at him. But Atem just shrugged. "I could understand how that could be frightening," Atem said. "I remember when we dueled against each other for the first time, in Death Valley. The thought that you were angry at me or disappointed in me was more than I could bear."

"I don't really think you could ever be like that. You know that, right?" Yugi asked.

"Of course," Atem replied lightly. "You see, doesn't it feel better to get that off your chest?" Yugi nodded, and they finished the last of their hot chocolate.

Yugi rubbed his eyes when they were done and yawned. "I'll, uh, clean this up in the morning. I think I want to go back to bed."

Then Atem noticed something strange. "Yugi, what happened to your face?" he asked.

"My…?"

"Your face, Yugi," Atem repeated, and brushed his finger against Yugi's left cheek. Yugi winced; it burned like fire when Atem touched it. "What happened?"

Yugi sat in shock and gently grazed his contusion. "I… don't know…"

* * *

Yugi was subdued this morning, just as he had been for the past week. Atem had asked if it was bad dreams again, but Yugi always said no. Atem began to get even more concerned as Yugi began to limp around the house and wear heavier and heavier clothing. Nearly every moment of the day he had a dazed look on his face, like he was daydreaming constantly. Atem didn't know what to make of it.

Atem walked into the living room where Yugi was sitting idly on the couch. "Hey, Yugi," Atem said. Yugi didn't look up. "Did you want to play Duel Monsters today? You may be the King of Games for now, but I might have gotten a few new strategies since the last time we dueled."

Yugi still didn't look up, and Atem walked up behind him and touched him on the shoulder. Yugi cried out and clutched the place where Atem had put his hand. "Yugi, was it is, what's wrong?" Atem asked quickly.

Yugi's breathing became steadier and he let go of his shoulder. "Nothing. I'm fine. I just… I spaced, I didn't know you were in the room."

"That seems to be happening a lot lately," Atem noticed. "Are you sure you're alright, Yugi? You've been acting stranger and stranger for the last few days."

"I told you, I'm fine!" Yugi exclaimed. "So… so don't worry about me. You wanted something?"

"Yes…" Atem said, looking at Yugi curiously. Yugi fidgeted under his gaze. "I wanted to know if you wished to play a round of Duel Monsters."

"Actually, I'm going to pass," Yugi said, turning away from Atem.

Atem raised his eyebrows. "What, too busy?"

Yugi frowned. "I'm not in the mood right now. Maybe another time," he said softly.

Atem got up and left, but he resolved to figure out whatever was going on with Yugi and figure it out soon.


	2. Scarred and Barred

"Hey, Yugi, want to go down to the beach with us?" Tea asked, flaunting her perfect figure in a tube top and short-shorts. In comparison, Yugi was wearing surprisingly heavy clothing, school jacket and all. And Atem thought that women were always cold.

Yugi shook his head and bent over the book he was reading a little more. Atem and Tea were both in beach clothing and standing in the doorway of the bedroom. Joey and Tristan were in the kitchen, raiding the Mutous' refrigerator as they made a picnic basket.

Tea was concerned for Yugi, just like everyone else was. She walked next to him as he read by his desk and gently touched his shoulder. Yugi flinched. "Yugi, what's up with you?" she asked. "You've been no fun for the last couple of weeks. You never want to go out or do anything but stay cooped up in this stinking room of yours."

"I'm not cooped up, and my room doesn't stink," he said shortly, and pulled himself away from Tea's touch.

She held her head and grimaced. "So you're finally going through puberty, aren't you?" she growled. "You know, I actually thought that you would stay nice when this happened, but I guess I was wrong."

Yugi didn't respond, and Atem frowned deeply. His reclusiveness and aversion to touch had increased exponentially since the night that Yugi had first dreamt that nightmare. "Tea, let's go," Atem said quietly. He wanted to speak to Yugi alone when he got back.

Yugi's mood wasn't the only thing that had changed. He seemed to be getting thinner and paler with each passing day and his sleeping patterns had become erratic. One day he would not seem to want to sleep at all, trying to stay up as long as Grandpa would let him. The next day he would jump into bed as soon as was acceptable and sleep until noon the next day. Almost every night, Atem would see Yugi toss and turn in his sleep and hear him mumble things like "please stop" or "I'm sorry". Whatever his dreams were, they were taking a heavy toll on Yugi, and no matter how hard Atem tried to persuade him, he would never admit that something was wrong.

"Yugi didn't want to come?" Tristan asked as they headed to the shore. Atem shook his head. "He never wants to do anything fun anymore, y'know? Plus, it's the middle of summer. Why's he wearing all of that clothing? It's crazy."

"Yeah," Joey said. "I don't know what's with him… it's like he went back ta da Yug' we used ta make fun of. A few years ago, he never talked ta anyone beside da teachers or Tea. We thought he was totally lame 'cause he was so shy… what would make him go back ta that after everything he's been through?"

Again, Atem shook his head. "I don't know… but I'm going to find out."

* * *

Yugi began to change the bandages on his forearm. The long, thin cuts running across his arm and over his wrist had bled through again, staining his jacket before he realized it. He had to hurry – the others had been gone for a few hours already, and who knows when Atem would come back.

"Come on…" Yugi mumbled angrily. It was extremely difficult to tie a knot with only one hand.

"Yugi?" Atem's voice said. Yugi heard his footsteps approaching the bedroom and hastened to clean everything up. Atem couldn't see this, he would be angry; he didn't want to anger him again…

But it was too late. Atem walked into the room and saw the cuts, bandages, antiseptic, and stained jacket. Yugi bit his lip. There was going to be a big punishment for this. "Yugi, what have you been doing?" Atem said. He recognized those kinds of cuts immediately and grabbed Yugi by the arm.

Yugi cried out in pain and fear. "Yugi, answer me," Atem commanded. Yugi's breaths were shallow and panicked.

"I-I haven't b-been d-d-doing anything…" he said. Tears began to flow down his cheeks and he sobbed.

"You think that I don't realize what this means? You think that you can lie to me like you have for the past month?" Atem asked angrily. Yugi wept and tried to pull away, but Atem wouldn't let go. "Tell me, admit it. What have you been doing?"

"I-I won't do it again, I promise, I swear… Please don't be angry with me, please," Yugi begged desperately. "Please stop, I'm sorry." At these words, Atem released him immediately. Was this the moment Yugi had been dreaming about for so long? Was it the shame or the guilt of hurting himself that was consuming him?

Atem gently hugged Yugi. Yugi screamed and pushed Atem away, scrambling to the corner of the room. "Yugi…" Atem said softly, utterly in shock at his partner's behavior. Then he thought of something. "Yugi, take off your shirt."

Yugi trembled at this order. He would be so angry, so angry… but Yugi obediently peeled off his long-sleeved shirt, now tainted with crimson blood. Atem gasped as he saw bruises of all colors on Yugi's chest and arms, the gouges, scratches, and burns that covered Yugi's upper body. Atem wondered how much worse it was on his other half.

Atem walked over to Yugi, who was shaking and putting his soiled shirt back on. "You're better than this," Atem whispered. "I don't understand, Yugi, I don't understand at all. Why did you do this to yourself?"

"I… I w-wanted you to be p-proud of me," Yugi said.

Atem's jaw dropped. What kind of twisted, masochistic ideology was Yugi spouting? "Proud of you?" Atem repeated incredulously. "Proud of you? Why would I be proud of you for hurting yourself? If anything, Yugi, I'm disappointed."

"No – why?" Yugi asked. "I never complained, not once did I say anything!"

"You expect me to be happy with you for not expressing pain that you caused yourself? What do you take me for? Get this ridiculous notion out of your head, Yugi! You need to stop this, now."

Yugi sunk to the ground, holding his head. "I know, I know, I'm sorry, I didn't mean to… That's right, it's my fault, I should have been more careful… No excuses, I know, I'm sorry…"

Many parts of this speech didn't make any sense at all to Atem. It was as if Yugi was having a conversation with himself or someone else in the room. "It's alright… but we need for you to stop this now, okay?" Atem said soothingly. "Whatever help you need, we'll get. But you have to promise me-" Atem turned Yugi's head towards him. "Promise me you'll never do this again. Alright?"

"Promise, I promise, it won't happen again," Yugi said quickly. "Please don't be angry at me, please don't be…"

"I'm not angry," Atem said. "I'm concerned, as I have been for a long time. But it stops now. I want you to talk to me. Tell me everything that's been going on: why did you start this? Why didn't you tell me? What kept it going for so long?"

Yugi was quiet for a moment and his eyes fazed out. "I want… to go to bed…" he said at length. Atem was confused. It was only six o'clock. Maybe Yugi's blood loss had made him tired, for it seemed by Yugi's shirt, bandages, and sheets that a lot of the vital fluid had seeped out.

"Alright, let's get you cleaned up first and then you can go to bed." Atem helped Yugi bandage the cuts on his arms, and then placed more across the many injuries on his torso. Finally Atem changed Yugi's sheets and let him put on his pajamas.

Yugi crawled into bed and lifted the covers over his body. "You're going to… watch me sleep?" Yugi asked, peering at Atem.

"Until it's time for me to go to bed," Atem replied. "I want to make sure that you won't do anything that I wouldn't be proud of."

Yugi nodded and closed his eyes. In moments he had fallen asleep and was breathing heavily. Atem watched him for a few hours, contemplating what could have driven Yugi to this madness in the first place. Finally, as the late summer sun set over the city of Domino, Atem changed into his pajamas and dozed off as well.

* * *

When Atem woke up early the next morning, Yugi wasn't in the room. Atem berated himself for being so stupid and trusting someone in Yugi's condition to make rational decisions and keep their word. He rushed out of the bedroom and saw Yugi sitting in the kitchen, staring wide-eyed at the floor and rocking back and forth. Both of his eyes were black, his nose was bleeding, and his lip was split.

Atem grabbed a paper towel and started wiping the blood from Yugi's face. "Yugi, you promised," Atem said, choking on his emotion as he realized how sick Yugi was. "You promised me that you'd never do this again."

"It was the price I had to pay," Yugi whispered, "for my disobedience."

"You were punishing yourself? For what? For hurting yourself in the first place?"

"Everything's going to be better…" Yugi said softly. "I'll never be bad again…"

Yugi looked steadfast and determined, and Atem didn't know whether to be happy or to be even more disturbed.


	3. The Truth at Last

Yugi's bruises and cuts had begun to fade and heal, although some left scars which marred his small, boyish form. As Yugi had sworn, no new wounds had appeared, although Yugi refused to talk about what made him start injuring himself in the first place. Whenever Atem would ask, Yugi would seemingly leave his body and go somewhere else until Atem made it known that the conversation was over. This concerned Atem, because whatever started Yugi's self-flagellation in the first place could easily surface again.

As another day had come and gone, Atem had taken the opportunity to drill Yugi with questions again. "Yugi, I know that you never want to answer this," Atem began, "but I'm going to ask you again anyway: Why on earth did you start to hurt yourself? What made you do it?"

Atem expected him to space again, but to his surprise Yugi turned to him and looked at him pleadingly. "I never did this to myself, I haven't been doing anything to myself," he said quickly. "It was someone else, I…" Then Yugi's eyes glazed over and he fell silent.

"Yugi? Yugi!" Atem exclaimed, shaking the boy. "Are you telling me the truth? Who's hurting you like this?"

Yugi turned back to Atem. "I want to go to bed," he said, and left the living room to go to sleep.

Atem cursed in Old Egyptian. He was just on the verge of a breakthrough when Yugi had stopped suddenly. Was it because of fear, protectiveness, or something else? This had to be one of the most agonizing processes Atem had ever experienced. He decided he would come back the next evening and try to wheedle some more information out of the person who would once have readily told him everything.

* * *

Yugi slept in this morning. Perhaps he was feigning and was trying to avoid another interrogation, Atem thought. But every time Atem went into the room, he saw Yugi sleeping soundly.

Yugi finally stumbled into the living room at eleven-thirty. "It's about time you woke up, Yugi," Atem said jokingly. "I thought you were going to sleep until next…. Monday…" Yugi wasn't looking very good. He was clutching his abdomen and bleeding from the mouth. He breathing came in short gasps.

Yugi swayed and Atem caught him before he fell. "This was the price… I had to pay… for my disobedience…" he panted, and passed out in Atem's arms.

Atem frantically called the hospital and an ambulance came to pick Yugi up. Yugi was rushed to the emergency room and had to have surgery. Atem sat nervously in the waiting room. If anyone else was hurting his partner, they would pay and pay dearly.

After ages of lip-gnawing worry, the doctor finally emerged. "Mr. Mutou?" he said. "Your brother's stabilized, but he's going to need some further care. We have some questions…"

"What happened? What was wrong with him?" Atem asked, standing up.

The doctor was taken aback, but he continued. "Your brother had two broken ribs, Mr. Mutou. One punctured his lung while the other pierced his stomach. He had severe internal bleeding. We're lucky you got him here so quickly." He adjusted his glasses and cleared his throat. "Would you care to tell me how he got those wounds, Mr. Mutou?" The doctor's voice had a strange, accusing tone. Was he blaming Atem?

"I don't know, I told you," Atem replied darkly. "He walked into the room with blood flowing from his mouth."

"And where was he before that?"

"In his room," Atem answered. "I thought he was sleeping."

"You called the hospital around noon, am I correct? Seems a little odd for him to sleep so late, doesn't it?"

Atem glared at him. "Yugi's a late sleeper sometimes."

"Yes, well, we'll ask him some questions once he gets better. It's standard procedure, of course," the doctor said, and walked off.

Atem entered into Yugi's hospital room and held the boy's hand. "I promise you, Yugi… whoever's doing this to you… I'll stop them, no matter what."

* * *

A day passed, but Yugi had not gotten any better. If anything, his condition had worsened severely. The person hurting Yugi had found a way to do it while visiting hours were over, because mysterious injuries had popped up overnight. Yugi began to slip away. He didn't have much time left at this rate.

For the third time, Atem walked into the hospital room. Yugi was lying, weak and pale, on the hospital bed. He was lifeless, like a corpse already. Atem walked over to Yugi's side and fell to his knees.

"Yugi, please," Atem said, grabbing Yugi's hand. "Wake up, wake up and tell me how to help you. Every day I have to leave, and every day you get worse and worse. Wake up, Yugi, please."

Atem felt hot tears run down his face and fall onto Yugi's limp and bruised form. Was it over? Would they never speak again? Would this be the last moment Atem had to look into Yugi's face, to watch his chest rise and fall with assisted breath? What would Atem be in this world without Yugi? He had never known the twenty-first century alone.

But as Atem was wallowing in fear and despair, Yugi's eyes slowly opened. Atem held his breath as Yugi's lids blinked as if he was about to go back to sleep. Finally, Yugi was completely awake. He looked at Atem and tried to speak, but the respirator helping his torn lungs wouldn't let him. Atem hurried to get a pen and pad of paper and gave it to Yugi.

Slowly and steadily, Yugi wrote on the paper. Atem lifted it up with shaking hands and read. "Stay away from me," it said. Atem's heart stopped. Why would Yugi ever write anything like that?

Yugi wrote again. "Get out!" Atem took Yugi's harsh notes and backed out of the room slowly, leaving Yugi to himself.

He was in shock as he paced around the waiting room, trying to figure everything out. Ever since Atem had found out about Yugi's cutting, Yugi had seemingly blamed Atem indirectly for his injuries, saying that Atem was the motive for everything he had done. Now, as those injuries began to worsen, Yugi had rejected him completely. But why? Atem had never hurt Yugi.

Atem glanced through the glass into Yugi's room. He was asleep again, and Atem didn't know how much longer Yugi had left. Yet as Atem watched, a single thin cut wound its way over Yugi's cheek without anything causing it. Then everything fit into place.

Atem burst into Yugi's room and shook him awake. Yugi gasped and tried to push Atem away. "Listen to me, Yugi, I'm not the one who's hurting you," Atem said. Yugi quieted a little, perhaps out of sheer exhaustion. "I know that he looks like me, but you know I would never do anything that would harm you. I love you.

"This all started when you had that nightmare about me. You must have dreamt that I hurt you, and that's how you got that bruise on your cheek. Weeks went by and you kept getting injuries. You started to forget what was dream and what was reality, so you didn't tell anyone about what was happening for fear that the dream Atem would hurt you more.

"You told me someone else was hurting you, so the spirit that's been haunting you through your dreams got angry and punished you for telling me something that would expose its existence. It was comfortable when I thought you were doing it all to yourself, but you finally got the courage to admit the truth.

"So whatever you do, Yugi, you cannot go to sleep again, you must not. Not until we find a way to keep you safe from this evil spirit."

Yugi's eyes fluttered. He was so tired…

"You can't, Yugi, not now!" Atem said urgently. "If you give this spirit of dreams one more opportunity to hurt you, you could die. You are on the verge of it already, and you know it. Don't let him hurt you, Yugi, don't let him!"

Groggily, Yugi nodded and his eyes opened wider. "I'll find a solution to this, I promise. But I need some help. I'm going to have to leave you for a while, but you must not go to sleep again, no matter what."

Atem walked out of the room and looked back. Yugi looked determined, but Atem had to hurry if he was going to keep Yugi safe. The young boy could only stay awake for so long.

He walked quickly out of the hospital and hurried down the street to an old magic shop, the owner of which he knew very well.


	4. Misery Loves Company

"Elisa, I need your help," Atem said. "It's about Yugi."

Elisa looked concerned. "Yugi, your brother, right?" Atem nodded. "What happened?"

"A dream catcher is haunting him," Atem explained. "It's been doing it for weeks. I didn't even recognize the symptoms until a few hours ago, when I saw a cut form on his face while he was sleeping."

"Weeks?" Elisa repeated. "Atem, this is serious. He could be very hurt…"

"He's already hurt. He's in the hospital, so I need you to explain everything as quickly as you can before he goes to sleep again."

Elisa nodded. "A dream catcher preys on people who often experience recurring nightmares. It then takes the form of the object of their fear and uses it to torture them whenever they go to sleep. It influences its host, making them feel extremely tired or insomniac at will. The dream catcher makes its host's dreams feel very real, so real that the injuries experienced in the nightmare manifest in their waking life.

"The only way to expel a dream catcher is for an outside party to enter into the host's mind during one of their dreams. Then you'd have to physically destroy or remove the spirit before he can do any more damage to your brother." She handed him a blue crystal. "This can help you. It may not be as powerful as the old Millennium Eye, but it's strong enough to enter shallow parts of the mind."

"Thank you, Elisa… If you ever need anything…"

"Anything for you and your brother, Atem," she replied, smiling. Atem took his crystal and rushed back to the hospital, hoping that he hadn't delayed too long. In just a few minutes he had returned to Yugi's room. Yugi had faithfully stayed awake, although he looked very drowsy.

"Yugi, I know how to help you," Atem said, sitting down next to Yugi on his bed. "But I need to enter your mind and come with you in your dream."

Yugi looked a little nervous. Atem knew why – Yugi had been having recurring nightmares about him, which is why the dream catcher had taken Atem's form. Atem did not know the reason for Yugi's dreams, but that wasn't important right now.

"Whatever's in your mind isn't nearly as important as saving your life. I need to do this or I…" Atem felt his throat close up. "Yugi, I can't lose you. I can't go on thinking that I was so close and yet I failed. Let me help you."

Yugi began to write on his pad. "What do I need to do?" his note said.

"Go to sleep," Atem instructed. "I will join you as quickly as I can." Yugi leaned back against his pillow and closed his eyes. He was asleep within seconds.

Atem held the crystal and clasped Yugi's hand. He waited for a moment, and suddenly his felt his consciousness being pulled from his body and into the depths of Yugi's mind.

Atem knew something was wrong when he opened his eyes and found himself inside a completely empty room. This wasn't Yugi's dream… this was another part of his mind. "Not a very powerful telecrystal, was it, Elisa?" Atem muttered bitterly to himself. How was he supposed to find Yugi in time now?

Out of nowhere, Yugi popped up behind him and tapped him gently on the shoulder. "What are you doing here? You don't belong in this room, Atem."

"Yes, I know… but how are you here? I thought you would be in your dream," Atem responded.

"Yeah, well, I guess I am… It's hard to explain. I'm there, but I'm here too," Yugi said, smiling. "But I think whatever you did with that crystal of yours must have upset master… he's around here somewhere, but he's not in our dream."

"Master?" Atem repeated, disgusted. "Yugi, you shouldn't call him that. He's not your master."

"Oh, he wants us to call him that. He'll be really angry if we don't, and I really don't feel like getting another beating… Master is mad at us when we're not obedient," said Yugi. He grimaced as he remembered the many, many punishments that had come before, and the white walls shifted in response. Colors bled through and created a sort of movie theater that replayed horrifying moments in which Atem had been violently attacking Yugi, or so it seemed.

"Yugi, I will protect you from him. You don't have to be afraid of him anymore," Atem said reassuringly, and put his hand on Yugi's shoulder.

Yugi suddenly flew into a rage and bared his teeth at Atem. "You never protected me! You pretend to care while you sit back on your behind and watch me suffer! You think you're so great but you're not. I hate you!"

What? Atem had just come to save him. Yugi had been acting perfectly normal, and now…

But suddenly Yugi burst into tears and sank to the ground. "I felt so alone. I didn't know what to do. You left me all alone and master was the only one who noticed me… I couldn't be alone again…"

"I didn't mean to… Yugi, I'm sorry," Atem said, confused.

Yugi gave a light laugh and stood up, brushing off his pants. "It's fine, I understand if you make mistakes. We all do. We just need to set it right, that's all."

Atem frowned. If Yugi's emotions were so volatile here, he would have to choose his words carefully to avoid another breakdown. "Yugi, do you know where your master is?"

"You expect me to know everything?" Yugi asked bitterly. "I'm not perfect, you know. I'm just a normal person like you and the rest of me."

"No, no, but you have more power here than I do. You have more power here than even your master does, you just have to show him," Atem coaxed.

Yugi held his head. "I don't know where he is, Atem… I'm really sorry, I'm really, really sorry…" Atem put his finger beneath Yugi's chin and raised Yugi's face to look at him.

"Don't be sad," said Atem. "We'll find him, I promise. But I don't know my way around your mind. Can you help me?"

Yugi suddenly glowed with glee and nodded. He bounded off toward one of the blank walls of the room and passed right through it. Atem walked up to the wall tentatively. Was he supposed to follow Yugi? He pressed his hand on the wall and felt no substance within it. Closing his eyes, he walked forward until he knew he was on the other side.

A cool breeze brushed against Atem's face and swept up his loose shirt. He opened his eyes again and was met with a picturesque beachside cottage. The air was chilly in comparison with Domino's summer, and Atem shivered. Small snowflakes fell to the ground and melted in the waves of the sea. Short trees swayed in the wind and the long grass rippled beautifully.

"What is this place?" Atem wondered. "A place in Yugi's past I've never seen before? Why would he lead me here?" Then a certain thought came to him. "The presence of the dream catcher combined with the power of the telecrystal might have caused him to lose control of his mind. We might have to go round and round to find the intruder."

The only object of interest in the scene was the cottage. Atem approached it and knocked on the door. "Visitors?" a female voice said. "We don't often get visitors… Yugi, open the door."

A young boy, probably only between four and five, went to greet Atem. He must have been Yugi – he had Yugi's hair – but he was even shorter than usual, so much so that Atem had to crouch to see his eyes through his bangs. "Yugi, do you know where we are?" Atem asked.

Yugi furrowed his brow cutely. "'Course I know, but the, uh, question is d'ya know where we are?" Atem frowned. Was this really the five-year-old Yugi he was talking to?

"Who was it, Yugi?" the female voice asked. She walked up and Atem stood respectfully. She was very pretty and had red, curly hair. She was wearing a dirty apron and was wiping her sudsy hands on it.

"I'm sorry if I've caught you at a bad time, ma'am. Are you Yugi's mother?" Atem asked. Yugi never talked about his parents, so Atem was curious to find out more about them.

But at his question, the woman grimaced. "Yugi, go off and play," she instructed, and the young, wild-haired boy ran off into the grass, throwing himself into it with wild abandon. It was taller than he was, and he was soon lost inside it. "Come inside."

Atem entered the extremely cramped house and stood until she offered him a chair. "Tea or goat's milk?" she asked.

"Uh… neither, thank you," he said.

She collapsed into other chair at the table – for there were only two – and took a long draught from her wooden cup full of fresh milk. "Yugi's parents died two years ago. He was young, very young, so he doesn't remember it very much. Many members of Yugi's family have died, you see, in very strange accidents, so Yugi's grandfather and I were the only ones who could take him in."

She sighed. Atem could tell that she was very tense. "I don't know why I'm telling you all of this, really. Was there something you wanted?"

"Ma'am, you seem to want to tell this story, and I seem to want to hear it," he replied. "Go on, if you wish."

She smiled at his kindness. "I'm Yugi's aunt, his mother's sister, so I was his closest relative when they passed on. I don't have a very good life to offer him, I fear… I'm just a simple goatherd, and my home isn't very big. Yugi has given me wonderful company, but we're an hour's journey from the nearest school and he won't be able to play with any children his age. Even now, all he does is take apart my furniture and try to put it back together." She laughed. "He calls them 'puzzles'."

"It sounds like you're doing the best you can with what you have. I'm sure he's going to be a wonderful man when he grows up," Atem said soothingly.

She wiped a small tear from her eye. "Thank you for letting me rant. Now, did you need any-" Her head was suddenly rent from her body and it fell onto the table, spilling blood over the worn wood and into her drink. Atem stood up in horror. Was this the work of the dream catcher?

Yugi, full-grown, stood in the entrance of the cottage casually. "Shame, isn't it? Ready to go?"

Atem gaped at him. "Yugi, your aunt... what happened?"

"She was gathering fodder for the goats when the blade from the sickle slipped. Cut her head clean off. I was actually with her at the time… That's when I was sent to Grandpa."

"That's horrible. I'm sorry," Atem said. "But… why did you show me this?"

Yugi shrugged. "I don't think I did. But hey, misery loves company, right?"


	5. Desperate Searches

The scenery shifted again and Yugi disappeared. Then Atem found himself in the midst of a classroom. He must have been invisible, because no one expressed surprise when a person suddenly appeared in the middle of the room.

Many of the students were young, so this had to be second or third grade. Atem noticed Tea sitting in the corner, doodling on her page. "Students, we'll be welcoming a new student to our class today," the teacher said. A shy boy walked into the room, fiddling with his new uniform. "Go on, tell everyone about yourself," the teacher enticed.

"M-my name is Yugi Mutou," he stuttered. He was incredibly nervous, and Atem understood this all the more now that he knew the isolation Yugi had experienced while living with his aunt. He probably couldn't even remember a time when he had been around so many people. "I-I c-c-came t-to D-D-Domino a f-few d-days ago…."

Yugi had an amazing stutter that Atem had never heard before. A few people whispered to each other, and Yugi noticed. If it was possible, he got even more nervous. When he tried to speak again, no sound came from his lips. The teacher looked at him pityingly. "You can go sit down, Yugi," she said, and he gratefully ran to his chair.

Atem watched him for the rest of the class. A mean-looking girl was persistently poking Yugi in the back with the sharp end of a pencil. Atem wanted to rip her pretentious little pigtails out, but he had discovered that he couldn't touch anything when he had fallen through the wall of the school into the Domino streets.

Then, without warning, time seemed to fast-forward. The sun rose and set within nanoseconds and ghosts of Yugi's past traveled through Atem as months went by. It stopped at the second grade graduation party. The teachers had their table of food and the children had theirs, and the entire room was active with fun. Yet Yugi sat alone in a corner, looking nervously from one table to the other.

Whenever a teacher would walk next to him, Yugi would ask, "Which table is ours?" But he asked it so quietly that none of the teachers heard him. A few of those teachers were acting unusually irresponsible.

Yugi must have finally gotten thirsty, so he got up and walked over to the teachers' table. He looked around a bit and then reached up to put some punch into his cup. He drained it and then got another. Yugi drank quite a bit of punch while he was standing there, but no one seemed to notice. What he didn't know (and what Atem soon realized) was that one of the high school students had gotten the idea to spike the teachers' punch to see what happened.

A little late, a teacher saw Yugi and tapped him on the shoulder. "Sweetie, this is the teachers' table. Yours is over there."

Yugi turned around, swooning, and looked at her with unfocused eyes. "Sorry," he mumbled, and he bent over and threw up onto her shoes. Atem grimaced but couldn't help but laugh. He had never seen his partner drunk before.

"You're still in the Records Room," a soft voice said from nowhere. "You won't find your dream catcher in here."

"Yugi, you said you would guide me. I told you I don't know the way," Atem replied.

"I showed you the way," Yugi's bodiless voice said. "Walk out."

"I tried that," Atem said. "It led me to the memory of your aunt."

"You didn't walk far enough!" Yugi yelled. His voice echoed horribly and he sounded both frustrated and angry. "If you want to save me, you're going to have to do better than this!"

The vision of the classroom shattered and Atem found himself back in the white room. This time he kept his eyes open as walked through the wall. He passed through a section of complete and frightening darkness, darkness he never would have believed existed in Yugi's psyche. But after a few moments he emerged into what looked like a busy factory, where dozens of Yugis were walking around, checking machinery and holding clipboards.

Atem tapped on of them on the shoulder. He was wearing glasses and bending over a complex mechanism. "What do you want?" Yugi replied brusquely. "Keep it short, if you please, I'm a little busy."

"I… where am I?" Atem asked. "And what are you looking at?"

"This is the Operations Center. I'm checking the status right now… it's not looking good, not good at all. I swear, I have to send so many accident reports nowadays that my fingers are going to fall off."

"What do all these other people do?"

Yugi shrugged. "You know, maintenance, communications, stuff like that." Yugi beckoned another one of himself. "Send a dispatch down to Alpha Sector and tell them to get off their butts. We're on the verge of a complete systems failure!"

"Alpha Sector's working as hard as they can," the other Yugi replied. "But every time we fix something, something else goes wrong. We just can't do it, even with the extra resources. Something's happening on the Outside…"

"The source isn't on the Outside. The failure is coming from some internal system, but I've never seen anything like it before." The first Yugi sighed. "We should prepare for the worst. Tell everyone to get their tickets ready."

"Tickets?" Atem asked as the other Yugi left. "Tickets to where?"

Yugi turned to him. "Home, of course." He looked at his watch, which was covered in strange symbols. "I have to go. I hope you'll find your way around. By the way, you don't want to be in here if we have a system failure. I bet you left your ticket wherever you came from."

Atem looked around for a moment. "The dream catcher can't be here… Yugi – one of them – would have noticed him. He must be in a more secluded area."

Atem glanced behind him and saw a door labeled "Records Room". Up a flight of stairs was another door called "Control Room". Atem entered it and saw another Yugi dozing in a chair in the middle of a number of buttons and arms. The sleeping Yugi seemed to have a number of mechanical arms extending from his back. They were constantly moving levers and handling bellows.

Atem nudged him in the shoulder, but he wouldn't wake. Maybe it was because of the glowing device on the back on his neck. If the dream catcher could make Yugi tired at will, then this mechanism could be what he was using. Atem tried to remove it and then got a painful shock. The obvious method wasn't going to work. He still needed to find the dream catcher.

The Control Room wasn't helping him, so he left and returned to the central area. Where to go next…? The dream catcher could be hiding in the Debate Room. Atem entered there and saw two enormous pedestals. Two Yugis stood upon each of them, one wearing gold and one wearing silver.

"Now," another Yugi said, "the debate concerning Atem and the dream catcher will begin immediately."

Gold Yugi began. "I believe that we made a horrendous mistake by telling Atem about our condition. That only angered master and made our punishment worse. We were living together in harmony when Atem didn't know, but now that we've told him we've endangered the system. Furthermore, Atem doesn't seem to be making any substantial progress in locating and expelling master so far."

"I disagree. A single series of harsh punishments is a small price to pay for expelling master permanently. Atem could not be considered to have made substantial progress until he has found master, and we cannot expect him to explore all the rooms of our mind so quickly. Even we haven't found him yet," Silver Yugi replied.

"And that information should tell him the obvious – that the dream catcher is in the only room we don't inhabit. But our rescuer, the one we put so much hope in, neglected to identify our condition for thirty-two days! We should have chosen someone else, at least, someone we could trust in."

"We can trust in him. He has done more than enough for us. Think of the numerous occasions when he helped us to be better workers. Think of all the letters we've received from Communications from him. You know how he's encouraged us and taught us. He's helped us grow and made us strong. We owe him our faith!"

Atem couldn't see any end to this debate and took his leave. Something Gold Yugi had said had made him think. Approaching one of the Yugis in the central area, he asked, "Yugi, what room do you and the others not usually enter?"

Yugi pointed to a single door far down a long corridor. It was bathed in a ghostly spotlight and bore a label reading "Sanctum". "No one ever goes in there," Yugi said. "I mean, we have a few times, but not for a while."

"Would it be alright if I went in there?" Atem asked. "I'm looking for someone."

"Oh, I know. You're looking for master. I hope you find him, you know," Yugi replied. "I think that you can go in there right now, but if master is in there then it won't look like it should. Nothing's like it should be when he's around."

Atem walked toward the door of Yugi's Sanctum. It looked strange… as if it had been made of a beautiful and gleaming metal that had suddenly rusted or rotted through. He touched the doorknob and he knew – the dream catcher was inside here. He opened the door and was bathed in a warm, glorious light. Feeling suddenly strengthened, he stepped through and prepared to meet the creature that had hurt his partner for so long.


	6. Deception

The wonderful light soon faded and revealed a horrifying picture. It was Atem's palace in Egypt, but the lovely golden-brown stone was bathed in old, dark brown blood. His most trusted subjects were crucified to the wall, and screams of tortured men shook the ground beneath his feet.

Joey and Tristan were in cages suspended from the ceiling, while Tea was chained to the throne at the far end of the room. And Atem saw himself, ruling the scene with a grim smile and a stern hand. Yugi was prostrated at Atem's feet, begging pitifully for mercy.

"Please, please, master, I didn't mean to tell him, I swear," Yugi sobbed. "It just slipped out, and everything's fine now, see, you're back on your throne where you belong."

"Weakling!" the dream catcher yelled. He had an otherworldly voice that sent chills down Atem's spine. "You should offer your life in exchange for your treachery! Pathetic human mortal, useless swine, disgrace to your parents and to your grandfather's blood! Your apologies and futile pleading does not make me proud. If anything, I'm disappointed."

This had gone on far enough. Now the dream catcher was using Atem's form _and_ his words. "Evil spirit," Atem said, stepping out into the court and putting a protective hand on Yugi's shoulder, "I will not allow you to hurt Yugi anymore."

The spirit laughed. "So then, Atem, why didn't you stop me earlier? Where you afraid of me, perhaps, or did you never even notice?"

"Silence!" Atem commanded. "You have no power in Yugi's mind."

The spirit leaned forward and grinned. "Beg to differ." Both the dream catcher and the surroundings changed shape. They were back in the countryside next to the cottage, and the dream catcher had taken the shape of Yugi's aunt. "I can do whatever I want here, in this place of Yugi's greatest peace. He used to come here for a place of comfort, but I have made it a place of torment. I can do whatever I want to Yugi, and now that you're here I can do whatever I want to you!"

The dream catcher grabbed Atem by the throat and physically lifted him up off the ground. "If I killed you now, you would die for real, you understand?" Atem gasped for breath and the spirit's hand closed even more tightly. "I could kill you and I could kill Yugi, all without breaking a sweat. I've been doing this for centuries. Do you think that you're so special? Granted, you did take me off guard when you entered Yugi's mind, but that doesn't mean anything in the long run."

"Yugi… can stop you…" Atem choked. Yugi, who had been lying on the ground with tears in his eyes, looked up. "He has the most… power here."

The spirit casually tossed Atem to the ground and brushed off her hands. "Him? Have power? You make me laugh, Atem. If he had power, he would have used it."

"Power is independent of confidence," Atem panted, getting to his feet. "He has the strength and the ability, but he needs to know how to use it. He's one of the most powerful people I've met."

Yugi hung his head. He wasn't powerful. He wasn't strong. He was just a young, shy, dumb child who had let his nightmares control him.

"Tell him to get off the ground, then!" the spirit yelled. "Tell him to stand up for himself for once in his life! Every time he's done anything, you've been there or someone else has been there. He can't win on his own. He always needs encouragement, cheerleaders. Without those he's helpless, which is why you had to come here in the first place. If he was strong, he wouldn't have needed you!"

"No one can do anything on their own!" Atem responded. "That's why this world was made with more than one person in it. People were made to help each other, and strength is having the ability to help and the humility to be helped."

"No one can defeat me! Not you, not this boy, not any human being! If he wants to live, he must live in complete submission to me," the spirit snarled. "I will be his master, his ruler, his king!" The scene shifted back to Egypt, and the dream catcher had once again taken Atem's form.

"Do you know why it was that Yugi dreamed of you?" he asked. "He knows that you are strong and he is weak, and he knows how vulnerable he is compared to you. He knows that you could do whatever you want to him if you wished it. He knows that, though you may be kind to him at present, you are his king and he is your servant. You have and use power, and he cowers behind you."

"That's not true," Atem said, shaking his head. "I don't know why Yugi was having nightmares about me. But he is no coward, I assure you. I have seen his bravery."

"Bravery he had because of you! Don't you understand? He can't do anything on his own! He is nothing but a child, and you have known this since you met him. This is why you feel such a strong urge to protect him."

"I protect him because I love him. Nothing more."

"And he loves you, I'm sure. But does he protect you?" Atem stopped. That question caught him off guard. "You see? He does not protect you because he cannot protect you."

He could not let the spirit win this tussle of tongues. If he did, Yugi would never be well again. "You're wrong," Atem replied finally. "Yugi has protected me. He has protected me from myself. Perhaps some people have been born with raw ability and fierce drive, but there's a balance to everything. I lacked compassion, compassion that Yugi gives me. Everyday he puts his faith in people like I've never seen before. He comes up with new ways to make people happy. His strength lies in his heart and his mercy."

"Then I would like to test that theory," the spirit said. "If Yugi succeeds, I will leave him forever. If he fails, you both will die."

"I cannot make that decision," said Atem. He turned to Yugi. "This is your choice, partner."

"I can't…" Yugi said quietly. "If I don't win, you'll die, and it will be my fault!"

"I risked my life when I choose to come into your mind in the first place. I knew the consequences of failure."

Yugi frowned deeply. Maybe living with this spirit wouldn't be so bad. Atem shouldn't have to pay for his mistakes… But what would Atem think of him if he gave up now? Atem had always told him to stand up to his enemies and to believe in himself. If he had a challenge, Atem would not want him to back down!

"You're on, spirit," Yugi said, picking himself off the ground.

Atem smiled. He knew that Yugi had it in him. "Then you will be fighting for both of your lives in the Records Room. I will project a scenario into it, and if you handle it correctly then I will leave you permanently."

"What am I supposed to do?" Yugi asked.

The fake Atem shook his finger at Yugi. "That's not for you to know right now. I just want you to exhibit certain traits as you travel through your mind. Got it?"

Yugi felt a little nervous. How was he supposed to succeed when he didn't have any idea what he was doing? "Go on, we'll be watching you from here," the spirit said.

Yugi walked out of the Sanctum and into the Records Room. It was blank for a moment, but then it changed and became what appeared to be the inside of the Millennium Puzzle. "This place again?" Yugi asked. "I couldn't find my way around here to begin with."

He heard someone panting and followed the sound of their hastened footsteps. "Hey!" Yugi called out, jogging after them. "Hey, what's wrong?" He turned around a corner and saw a young girl quivering in the corner. She was dressed in dirty rags and had an incredible tan.

"Please, please help me," she begged. "I didn't do anything wrong, I swear."

A man walked straight through one of the walls of the puzzle, holding a winged rod with an eye on it. "Thief! You will be judged by the royal court of the pharaoh!"

He grabbed her by the wrist and pulled her with her. "Wait!" Yugi said quickly. "Don't you think that you should give her a chance to explain herself?"

"It is not your place to interfere!" the man responded. He turned around.

"Kaiba?" Yugi asked incredulously. But he couldn't be… Kaiba would never wear that long tunic. Besides, his skin was way too dark.

Kaiba frowned. "How dare you address me so, slave!" he yelled, and struck Yugi across the face. "I am Seto, the High Priest of the pharaoh himself. You will refer to me as 'lord' or 'sir'. Do you understand?"

Yugi, who had fallen to the floor because of the strength of Seto's blow, put his hand onto the ground to push himself up and was met with hot stone and dusty sand. He looked around and found himself in the middle of a marketplace, with Seto and the girl standing above him. "I said, do you understand?" Seto repeated.

Yugi did not want to be hit again, so he nodded numbly. "Yes, sir," he said.

"Seto," another man said. He had a thick wig of black hair bound with a gold circlet, and he had a large cloth satchel around his waist. It jangled when he moved; Yugi was surprised no one had tried to steal it. "Have you located…" He stopped when his eyes met Yugi's.

"The girl that has been causing so much trouble in the palace kitchens has been caught," Seto replied, ignoring his companion's sudden loss for words. "We will return her to the palace to perform a Millennium Trial immediately." The man did not respond. "Karim, why are you silent so? Speak!"

"Seto, this boy has an incredibly strong spirit. I can sense it even without the aid of the Scales," Karim said. "Was he causing you or anyone else trouble when you found him?"

"He was trying to protect the girl," said Seto. "Do you think that he is host to another, perhaps more powerful shadow creature?"

Karim looked at Yugi even more deeply, and Yugi began to get nervous. Perhaps he was supposed to go to one of those Millennium Trials to talk to Atem, but they seemed forebodingly dangerous to him. "I believe we should bring him with us."

Seto rested his Millennium Rod in his belt and cast a spell over Yugi and the girl who had asked Yugi's help. It bound their hands behind their backs with chains made of light. Yugi began to be herded into a crowd of many other criminals. With these many law-breakers, he might not be able to talk to Atem after all. And if he couldn't speak to the one person who knew him, how would he ever be able to pass this test?


	7. Sweet Dreams

Hi, guys! This is the end of the fic. But there are more to come, and I would be honored if you would read them. Just a few thanks to everyone who has supported me along the way:

Thanks to **Poisoned Black Rose**, **Alex Fisher, Pawzoff, YY-Lvrs **(who actually might be Sennen13)**, inuyashagirl818, Setep Ka Tawy, Black Magic2, Empress of the Light, YamiKoi, Masami Mistress of Fire, Deviousdragon, yugiyami luver1669, dragonlady222, olesia.love, Arion Girl, Sennen13, Mersedes, RyoBakura17, SwimmingSamurai, Mystik Genie, and A.YamiYugi **for reviewing!

Thanks to **Alex Fisher, Arion Girl, Deviousdragon, Empress of the Light, LadyTsubasa, Pawzoff, Pharaohess163, Poisoned Black Rose, YamiKoi, dragonlady222, and yugiyami luver1669 **for favoriting!

Thanks to the many people who alerted. I'm sorry, but I won't be able to name you all personally.

And thanks to everyone who read my story!

* * *

"Shada," Isis said to her fellow guardian, "I have sensed recently that all is not well in our kingdom of Egypt."

"What is your concern?" Shada asked.

"The sight of my Millennium Necklace has dimmed of late," she replied. "It is as if this entire place is transparent. I see it, but it does not seem real to me. It seems naught but a dream."

"I think that your energies have been distorted by the festival preparations," Shada said sympathetically. "You have been working hard – too hard, in my opinion. You know that our pharaoh has often let his birthday celebration pass without consideration."

"Nevertheless, I believe that his mother would have wanted us to enjoy the day she gave her life for his entry into this world," she said. "If not for him, let it be for us."

"Your thoughtfulness is without equal, Isis," said Shada. "But if you wish to do this, do not concern yourself with the affairs of the safety of the kingdom, at least not for the next few days."

"But if something were to happen…!?"

"Do you not think that we have the capabilities to withstand any catastrophe?" Shada asked, laughing. "Egypt will be fine. There is no need for alarm."

Isis smiled, and Karim walked through the opening into the guardians' private room. "We have amassed a great crowd of criminals. The pharaoh wishes to view their trials personally, so that he might have a good idea of the creatures that will be enlisted into our army."

"We will be there shortly, Karim," Shada said. He and Isis entered respectfully into the pharaoh's court room and saw a great line of people in tattered clothing kneeling before the king. The pharaoh Atem gazed at them all with inspecting eyes.

"Begin," Atem commanded softly. He was the pharaoh, the shepherd of all Egypt, so even the lightest of his words were taken with the utmost seriousness and care.

Yugi watched from a corner as, one-by-one, every criminal nervously approached Atem's throne. A sealing tablet was brought out, the shadow beast was identified and captured, and the criminal would be allowed to leave. Apparently, all the crimes they had committed were under the influence of these Duel Monster-like creatures.

After everyone else had left, Yugi was brought up. Atem's eyes lit up immediately. "My pharaoh," Karim said, "I think it should be known that this boy is no criminal. I found him protecting a girl – a girl he likely thought innocent – and I sensed the incredible shadow creature in his heart. I am surprised that we have not heard of many atrocities due to the darkness within him."

"I find him interesting, Karim," Atem said, leaning on his hand. "Not only because of the power of his spirit, but because of his incredible likeness to me." Yugi tried to suppress a gasp. Did Atem really not recognize him? Was he just pretending?

"A-Atem?" Yugi muttered. "Don't you remember me?"

Suddenly Yugi received another harsh blow to the side of the face. For the second time in one day, Seto had struck him. "A slave like you seems to have a streak of insolence! How dare you speak of the pharaoh so casually!"

"Silence, Seto," Atem said. Seto immediately fell silent. "Boy, why do you look so much like me? For that matter, why did you speak to me as if we had met before hand?"

"I-I… I, w-well, you looked like someone I had met before…" Yugi muttered lamely.

Atem raised his eyebrows. "Then, if you please, explain why you called me by my name?" Yugi bit his lip. "You lie to me, and I do not appreciate dishonesty," Atem continued. "Tell me, and now be truthful – why do you speak my name so lightly, as if we were the closest of friends?"

Yugi had to come up with a lie. Fast. "I used to work as a slave here, my pharaoh," Yugi fibbed. "You may not recall, but you used to treat me very kindly."

"Because we look so alike?" Atem said. "But certainly, I thought I would have remembered a boy like you, especially as you speak of us as companions."

"What… what do you mean, your highness?" Yugi asked respectfully.

"Assuredly, I don't believe I have ever seen a person with your color of skin," Atem confirmed. "I hope, of course, that you will not be overly offended."

"Of course not, your majesty," Yugi said, inclining his head. "But… I was born this way. I'm different than most Egyptians. And I honestly don't know why we look so much alike, but I think that's why you liked me more than the other slaves."

Atem nodded slowly. "Then I believe you will understand if we continue with the Millennium Trial."

"Yes, I will, but I didn't think that I had a shadow creature inside me," Yugi replied quietly.

Shada took out his Key. The Key's magic allowed him to see into Yugi's mind, and he found himself looking at a great and shapeless light. "What manner of shadow creature is this?" Shada asked himself. "It seems to have neither form nor shape."

Shada returned to the normal world, panting, and nodded to Aknadin. Aknadin prepared to separate Yugi's soul from the essence of the evil spirit. His Eye flashed and Yugi began to shake. Yugi had never felt this kind of power in him before. It made him tremble with every kind of emotion – rage, joy, fear. It made his blood tingle and his skin burn. A great, beautiful shimmer flowed from Yugi's mouth.

Atem was intrigued. This had never happened, not in any one of the previous Millennium Trials. This boy's strength must have been great indeed.

"Quickly, Seto!" Aknadin yelled. He could feel the magical reverberations of the boy's power, even without the magic of his Eye.

Seto raised his Millennium Rod and prepared to seal Yugi's "shadow creature" into the stone tablet.

"No!" Yugi thought desperately. He was powerful, too powerful, and he would never give that power up, never! Seto would die before he gave his strength up. Seto would die! Yugi prepared to use the magic he felt coursing through his veins, and he focused all of his madness onto Seto. But it was too late. That glorious sense of dominion he had felt was gone.

Yugi collapsed onto the ground, panting and feeling an enormous weight of despair press down on him. "You are free now, little one," Atem said, smiling.

Yet Yugi crawled over to the sealing tablet that held what he wanted so badly. "No," he sobbed. "No, please, give it back."

"You wish to return the shadow creature to your soul?" Isis asked incredulously. "But… why?"

Yugi screamed in frustration and violently punched the stone in front of him. He couldn't feel so weak anymore, so helpless. "Spirit, shadow creature," Yugi whispered in his mind. "I don't know if you can hear me, I don't know if you even care, but I know that you don't want to be cooped up in that tablet for the rest of who knows how long. Tell me how to get you free. I'll do anything, just come back and give me that feeling that you gave me before…. Give me the feeling that I can do something for once!"

Everything was silent, and Yugi could hear Atem's guardians whispering in the background.

"The boy's ka has been disrupted by the presence of the shadow creature," Karim said to Atem. "He feels its absence deeply."

"I have only seen such an extreme case in my earlier years of service to your father," said Aknadin. "The shadow creatures had been allowed to reside within their hosts for many, many years, and this had a detrimental effect on their minds. He will need serious attention and care."

Then Yugi heard the faintest whisper in the corner of his mind. "We are bound together forever, dearest Yugi," it said. "I am your pain, your anger, your fear. I was born out of your sadness and loneliness. I was purified into light by the love of your friends. I was twisted by the helplessness you feel. I can help you, and you can be a better, more powerful person when you return to them. Then you will be able to protect them. I am the strength of your heart. Love me, seek after me, and I will give you everything you've ever wanted."

"I love you," Yugi whispered softly. "I love you with all of my heart."

"Would you steal for me?" the spirit asked.

"Yes."

"Would you die for me?"

"Yes."

"Would you kill for me?"

Yugi hesitated. "I…"

"Look into the face of the one who lords over you. Look into the face of the one whose power is so great. He is a fierce magician, a powerful pharaoh, and a great intellect." Yugi looked into Atem's eyes, and Atem looked back at him. "If I return to you, then you must do something for me. You must prove that your love for me is absolute. You must show me that you value me and my great gifts above anything else this world has to offer, be it your life, your friends, or even your own soul. You will be bound by an unbreakable oath once you say it. Promise me. When I come back to you, kill this wretch you call a pharaoh! Kill him and all of his followers! They are nothing compared to us. We are forever."

"But Atem… he doesn't deserve this, he's helped me too much," Yugi argued. "Someone else, someone who's done wrong…"

"You would dare reject me, insolent child!?" the spirit yelled. The words suddenly made Yugi remember why he was here. The amazing power of the light in the stone tablet had made him forget – none of this was real. This was all an illusion, and he was supposed to be proving something to the creature that had tormented him.

"No, no, I won't kill him," Yugi said suddenly, standing up. "I won't kill anyone! You may have a lot to offer, but the price is too high! I won't give up my soul for you."

"You would renounce the omnipotence you know you deserve?" the spirit asked. "One who has been tested so greatly should be as a god…"

"No, I shouldn't be a god!" Yugi asked. He turned away from the tablet and noticed that the others in the room were frozen in time. "If I'm a human, and just a human, then that's fine by me."

Yugi didn't hear the spirit respond, and he smiled. He knew he had won.

As Yugi was mentally celebrating his victory, he felt a warm hand on his shoulder. "You passed the test," a deep voice said. "I'm very proud of you."

Yugi spun around and hugged his best friend enthusiastically. "Atem, I'm sorry, I didn't know what I was thinking," he said. "I'm so glad you're here and that you remember me!"

"Don't be sorry, Yugi," Atem replied. "For all great power is a strong temptation, and there's an even greater temptation to misuse that power. You did well, just as I expected."

"Does that mean that the spirit…?"

"He's already gone. You should have seen him when you chose not to harm anyone; he was very upset, I can imagine."

"You… were watching?" Yugi asked curiously.

"The entire time. And I must admit, I was about to kill the dream catcher myself when I saw that Seto had hit you." Atem touched Yugi's cheek – Yugi winced – and saw a dark bruise beginning to form. "I'm glad he didn't knock you around too much, though, considering the state that your body was in when we first started this."

"I'll be fine… I'm just glad that I'm alone in here again," Yugi sighed. He grimaced at his blunt words. "Um, of course, you were a much better roommate."

Atem chuckled. "I'm pleased you think so. But you hardly seem to be alone in here. I couldn't count how many of you I saw walking around in here when I was searching for the dream catcher."

"Oh, well, that's normal. For me, anyways," Yugi said lightly. "But now that I'm here… I think… I want to go to bed."

Atem smiled. "Have a good night, Yugi," Atem said, and then accessed the magic of the telecrystal to remove his consciousness from Yugi's.

He opened his eyes and felt good about being in his own body again. He looked at Yugi, who was fast asleep. Although he had tubes down his throat, up his nose, and in his arm, he looked peaceful now. His face was still covered in injuries, but he was having a good night's rest for the first time in a month.

Atem leaned back on the chair to watch his partner doze for the rest of the night. "Sweet dreams."


End file.
